Europol has dismantled a massive €700 million crypto fraud network, arresting nine suspects and shutting down fake investment platforms across nine countries.
The operation was completed last month and led to nine arrests and significant seizures of assets in Cyprus, Germany, Spain, France and Belgium.
Europol stated that the operation began as an investigation into a single fraudulent cryptocurrency platform but gradually developed into a complex and wide-ranging operation that uncovered a vast network of fraud and money laundering.
According to the Netherlands-based agency, the criminal network operated numerous fake cryptocurrency investment platforms, attracting thousands of victims with sophisticated advertisements promising high returns.
The victims were then repeatedly contacted by criminal call centres, where operators used social engineering techniques to pressure victims into making further payments by showing them inflated returns on fake trading platforms.
Once the victims had transferred their cryptocurrencies, the funds were stolen and laundered through various blockchains and cryptocurrency exchange platforms.
Europol said that the operation was divided into two phases.
The first phase began in October 2025, with coordinated police raids in Cyprus, Germany and Spain at the request of the French and Belgian authorities, where assets worth €800 million in bank accounts, €145,000 in cryptocurrencies and €300,000 in cash were seized.
The second phase, which took place at the end of November, targeted the affiliate marketing infrastructure that supports these online scams.
In a statement, the investigative body pointed out that in recent years, misleading advertisements impersonating renowned media outlets, celebrities and politicians, often using deepfake videos, have posed a significant global challenge.
“The data of potential investors obtained through manipulated advertising, even on reputable platforms, is crucial to the functioning of the crypto-scam industry as a whole,” it said.
Europol added that investigative authorities will continue to monitor the criminal organisation’s assets in the countries where it operates and resides.
